Hackers Crack PS3 Master Key At CCC

A group of hackers has demonstrated a way to permanently hack into Sony's Playstation 3 gaming console in order to run home brew software after they managed to crack its master key.

The hack, which was demoed at the Chaos Communication Congress in Berlin, Germany, will allow anyone to install Linux based home brewed operating system on the gaming console regardless of which firmware version it is running.

This has been made possible by cracking the master key used by Sony to authorise the installation of software on the gaming console.

The main advantage of the hack is that users will no longer have to fondle with jailbreak USB dongles in order to gain full control of the PS3 gaming console.

The developers behind the circumvention technique, a group called 'fail0verflow', have promised to release more details in January 2011.

In March 2010, Sony released a firmware update that removed the option for users to install other operating systems on older versions of popular gaming console while the new PS3 Slim doesn't have the "other OS" installation option altogether.